The Art of the Actor: The Essential History of Acting from Classical Times to the Present Day

257 Pages·2007·3.12 MB·English

by  Jean Benedetti

J E A N B E N E D E T T I
The essential history of acting, from
classical times to the present day
THE
Art
OF THE
Actor
by the same author
Dear Writer . . Dear Actress . . .
(The Love letters of Olga Knipper and Anton Chekhov)
The Moscow Art Theatre Letters
Stanislavski: His Life and Art
Stanislavski and the Actor
Stanislavski: An Introduction
THE
Art
OF THE
Actor
The essential
history of acting,
from classical times
to the present day
JEAN BENEDETTI
Routledge
Taylor & Francis Group
New York
Routledge is an imprint of the
Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
Life of Galileo © 1940 by Arvid Englind Teaterforlag, a.b. renewed June 1967 by Stefan S. Brecht; copyright © by Suhrkamp
Verlag, Frankfurt am Main. Translation copyright © 1980 by Stefan S. Brecht. Published by Arcade Publishing, New York,
New York.
The Caucasian Chalk Circle © 1955 by Suhrkamp Verlag, Berlin. Translation copyright © 1976 by Stefan S. Brecht. Pub
lished by Arcade Publishing, New York, New York”
First published in Great Britain in 2005 under the title The Art of the Actor by Methuen Publishing Limited: 215 Vaux-
hall Bridge Road London, SW1V 1EJ. Jean Benedetti has asserted his moral rights in accordance with The Copyrights,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Routledge Routledge
Taylor & Francis Group Taylor & Francis Group
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New York, NY 10017 Milton Park, Abingdon
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© 2007 by Jean Benedetti
Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-87830-204-2 (Softcover) 0-87830-203-4 (Hardcover)
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-87830-204-8 (Softcover) 978-0-87830-203-1 (Hardcover)
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Contents
Foreword vii
Acknowledgements ix
Introduction 1
1 Classical Rhetoric 7
2 Shakespeare and His Contemporaries 31
3 Declamation 37
4 Acting 47
5 Diderot 79
6 Coquelin 93
7 Realism 99
8 Stanislavski and the 'System' 109
9 Michael Chekhov 149
10 The New Actor in France 157
11 Meyerhold 173
12 Brecht 183
13 The 'Ritual' Actor 221
Conclusion 233
Select Bibliography 235
Index 239

Foreword
This book is not a formal, narrative history of acting or of individual
actors' performances. It is an attempt to trace the evolution of the
theories of the actor's art from classical times to the present day, and also
to demonstrate the persistence of certain key ideas over a period of 2,500
years.
The book is in broad sections to make clear the changing patterns of
thought. It moves from a discussion of the relationship of acting to
rhetoric, then to acting seen as declamation, and thence to acting in the
modern sense and so to realism and finally to the notion of the ritual,
'holy' actor.
It does not proceed in strict chronological order. Sections are
arranged so that readers can follow the discussions and debates on major
issues and see how key figures relate to each other in their theory and
practice.
The Art of the Actor is intended as a working tool and a sourcebook for
all those studying the theatre at whatever level. There is a large margin
on each page so that readers can make notes and comments.
Through my teaching both at undergraduate and postgraduate level,
I have become aware of the difficulties students experience when key
texts are difficult to obtain, out of print or have not been translated.
Much of the material presented here is, therefore, not accessible
elsewhere. Major extracts can either be read separately or after the main
body of the commentary or consulted as the need arises.
All translations, unless otherwise stated, are my own. They do not
claim to be scholarly or academic. My intention has been to produce
clear, modern translations of sometimes difficult texts so that readers
may become aware of the recurrence of certain ideas, of quotes and
allusions and thus of the continuity of a tradition of concerns. The
extracts from Brecht's plays are taken from the Methuen editions.
vii
THE ART OF THE ACTOR
Once again, my grateful thanks are due to John Collis and Elinor
Skedgell of the Rose Bruford College library for their generous and
unfailing help in obtaining source material.
Jean Benedetti, 2005
viii
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Suhrkamp Verlag for permission to translate texts
by Brecht, Hans Bunge, Kaethe Ruelicke and Angelika Hurwicz. I would
also like to thank the editorial board of the Societe d'Histoire du Théâtre
for permission to translate extracts from the classes given by Louis
Jouvet at the Conservatoire in Paris.
IX